Introducing the Nintendo DS Browser

Posted Sep 10, 2006 at 2:09AM by QJ Staff Listed in: Nintendo DS Tags: DS Browser, expansion pack, GBA, Nintendo DS Browser, Nintendo Wi-Fi
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Nintendo DS Browser


For the DS-lover who is always on the go and who needs to be online constantly, you can now lighten your travelling load and leave your laptop behind since your DS can now pretty much do the job for you.

Introducing, the brand-new official Nintendo DS Browser. Currently retailing for £30 (roughly $56), the Nintendo DS Browser comes bundled with a Memory Expansion Pak which fits into the GBA slot to give your DS the extra memory boost that the Browser will require. In the meantime, owners of different versions of the DS won't have to worry as two versions will be released to accommodate the older Nintendo DS and the slimmer DS Lite. This product will be aveilable by October 6.

Moving on to the details of the browser itself though, it is based on the multi-system web browser Opera, though this version has been tailor-fitted to the DS in order to make full use of its dual screens and touch screen functions. In the meantime, you can connect to the internet via Wi-Fi networks and hotspots, or by riding on the free Nintendo wi-fi clouds in your area. Checking your email, blogging, shopping online, and surfing is also made convenient for the user as you will only need to drag your stylus on the touchscreen as if it was a mouse pointer. As for entering text, you can also choose to use either the virtual keyboard on your screen, or handwriting recognition.

It also works like a regular browser where you can choose to save bookmarks and passwords, thanks to its built-in memory. Manipulating settings such as proxies and ports is also possible, and you can also lock your browser with a password if you're worried about security.

As for viewing webpages, you can select from two viewing options which are namely the Overview Mode, where you see a scaled-down version of the page and you can just zoom in to the part you want to check with the use of the touchscreen, and the SRR or Small Screen Rendering Mode which adjusts the web page to fit vertically on both screens so that you don't have to scroll horizontally.

Now the next question which we are dying to have answered would be if it has custom Nintendo wallpapers, pointers and screensavers. Afterall, everyone still wants desktop goodies.

Via Nintendo

 
 
 

Comments

by - 2006-09-10 04:21:47
US date??

Is it ever going to come out in the US? or can we import it. Whet the hell the japnese got it, europs getting it but still no word it we are getting it. And isn't Opera sa US made browser co.?
by ZAKKO - 2006-09-10 05:25:47
i got mine already here is the low down

the browser interface itself is in japanese but the kepad is in both jap and english so you can type in english or write the letters out in english too. you can see english websites too. the icons at the bottom of the screen is what you really need and they are simple to use, the buttons go left to right on the bottom like this - arrow left (back to previous page) arrow right (forward to next page), refresh button, url - hit this and type in a web site to go to it, star - sites you saved as favorits, binoculars - zoom in and bring up keypad, wrench - these are special settings all in jap - never used em dont really need em, question mark for help - again in jap, double screen - use to show the entire web page on both screens or hit again to show a magnified screen on top and on the bottom you move a square around - what ever is in the square is magnified on the top screen, picture button - show pics and text or just text on the site, magnnifying glass - change resolution from 50 to 80 to 100 to 120 to 150%, a loop button - jump from bottom to top of screen or vise versa. its pretty simple if you ask me. Load times are slow, it can take up to 3 minutes to load a page, especially one with a lot of pics (but you do have the option to turn the images off for quicker loading. Typing one letter at a time with a regular stylus can take quite some time so I opted to use 2 flexible thumb stylus I got on ebay that I found while searching for the browser itself - a lot less work intensive using two thumbs then one regular stylus. So far I have used it to view sites and send email, I havnt tried it to do any chatting yet. The picture is clear and load times are acceptable for email or sites without too many images. You can not view any flash on it but gifs show up just fine. All in all, I rate it a 7 out of 10. The pure joy of seeing a website on your ds for the first time is something else - waitng for the next page to load up is another thing. I can say that I always have my ds with me but I dont always have my lap top so in a pinch, it's great for being able to check you email on the go.
by - 2006-09-10 08:44:54
wtf

this is old.....

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